Abraham Lincoln Selfies

Abraham Lincoln photoAbraham Lincoln was the first “selfie” nut. His first photograph was in 1846, taken only about seven years after the daguerreotype process was introduced worldwide. Talk about your early adopters. That first photograph was basically a class picture as the newly elected young Lincoln prepared to go to Washington for his one term as a U.S. Congressman.

One clarification that probably doesn’t need to be said but I’ll say it anyway. This wasn’t actually a “selfie” by our standards. Not only didn’t Lincoln take the photo of himself, but he was forced to stand, or in this case sit, perfectly still for up to several minutes while the silver coating on a copper plate was being exposed. Metal “head holders” and other props were often used to help the subject stay still long enough to avoid a blurry image. Later photos were taken with the more advanced, but also more fragile, glass plate method. And alas, no Instagram.

Abraham Lincoln photoLincoln went on to have at least 130 photographs taken during the remainder of his life, with the final solo photograph taken in early February of 1865. Two photographs were taken after this. One was a erratically focused crowd shot of him standing on the Capitol steps giving his second inaugural address on March 4, 1964. The other was an unauthorized photo of Lincoln laying in an open casket in New York City following his assassination.

Abraham Lincoln photoIn most of the photos Lincoln sits or stands alone. One has him sitting with his youngest son Tad standing beside him gazing down at the book open in Lincoln’s lap. Perhaps the most intriguing photos are the series taken by Alexander Gardner at Antietam during Lincoln’s post-battle visit to meet with General McClellan. In one, the lanky Lincoln and the diminutive McClellan stare down each other in a group photo with other generals.

Abraham Lincoln photoI write about Lincoln and his photographs for a few reasons. It was November 8, 1863 that Lincoln sat for a photo with his two secretaries, John Nicolay and John Hay, standing to either side. I have also recently read two books that look at the photographers most often associated with Lincoln and the Civil War: Matthew Brady and Alexander Gardner. The other of one of the books, Nicholas J.C. Pistor, will be a speaker at the upcoming Lincoln Forum in Gettysburg. The author of the second book, Richard S. Lowry, was a Forum speaker a few years ago. Both books are wonderful reads. I’m also including a section on Lincoln and photography in my “work-in-progress,” so I have a particular interest in this area.

David J. Kent is an avid science traveler and the author of Lincoln: The Man Who Saved America, in Barnes and Noble stores now. His previous books include Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World and two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate.

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Some days are sunsets…other days are sunrises

Some days are sunsets…

Sunset - A Time for Change

More details to come.

[Daily Post]

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His next book is on Abraham Lincoln, due out in 2017.

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I Saw a Fish, or A Fish I Saw

Everyone has been to Sea World in Florida, or the New England Aquarium in Boston, or perhaps just the Mandalay Bay Hotel Aquarium in Las Vegas. For many people all the big public aquariums start to look eerily alike – a big tank with toothy sharks, small tanks with colorful reef fish, and brilliantly lit tanks of jellyfish (or more accurately, sea jellies, since jellyfish are neither jelly nor fish).

But to come to this conclusion is to miss the uniqueness of each aquarium, a uniqueness that the curators strive to achieve with the passion that comes from doing what you love to do. Since each aquarium by definition exists in its own local environment, each tries to bring that individuality to the public. Oh, and also a big tank of toothy sharks.

In going through some photos of a recent visit to North Carolina I came across a different kind of toothiness – a sawfish.

Sawfish

Sawfish look like people (well, maybe a little…just look at the photo above). Okay, not so much people. But they do look like sharks with long snouts (called a rostrum) filled with teeth-like denticles. Technically they are considered to be rays, the flattened fish with winglike fins that skate across the bottom of the tank and sneak up on tourists in the tropics.

Not surprisingly, sawfish use their “saw” to slash at prey with their denticle-covered rostrum. They also use it to defend themselves from predators, even if those predators are merely the unprotected ankles of an unwary wader. Unfortunately for sawfish, however, their saw hasn’t kept them from becoming endangered species. Many are poached for their rostrum (as a collectors item) or their fins (for food). Many are simply pulled up as bycatch by fisherman looking for more legal forage.

Sawfish are popular at public aquariums where they can be found, but are actually difficult to maintain due to their size and the lack of success in breeding programs. There is some question as to how much longer they will be around to be seen.

And I have to admit they are pretty cool to see.

More on aquariums here.

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Gondolas in Venice – New Header Image

James JoyceAh, Venice. Italy. One of my favorite stops on my world tour. I have added another image to my header, joining the five other images that rotate from page to page. The photo was taken near Piazza San Marco – St. Mark’s Plaza – in Venice during a beautiful late summer day.

The vagaries of the cover photo requires some cropping to fit the space, so here is the full photo.

Venice, Italy gondolas

In the background you can see the 16th Century Benedictine Church of San Giorgio Maggiore located on a small island called, not surprisingly, Giorgio Maggiore.

I’ll have more photos of Venice in a future post. In case you missed it, check here for a photo of the Campanile, the bell tower in the Piazza San Marco.

Read about the other cover photo images here.

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Niagara Falls High and Low

Ah, Niagara Falls. One of the wonders of the world. And a place that just has to be experienced. And to fully experience it you need to see it from both the American and the Canadian sides, as well as both from dry land and aboard the famous Maid of the Mist boats that take you right up under the, well, mist.

Niagara Falls, which is where the Niagara River drains Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is actually three separate waterfalls. Yes, three, not two. Most people think of the arching Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side and the straighter American Falls on the American side. But there is a third drop – Bridal Veil Falls – which is narrower and separated from American Falls by the tiny Luna Island.

Assuming you arrive by car from the American side, be sure to take the turn over the bridge crossing the deceptively peaceful river just upstream from American Falls and pass onto Goat Island. Here you can get right up to the edge of all three falls. Also visit the edge of American Falls from the US mainland side. You can even walk out on a tall structure that overhangs the river and provides a good view of the falls.

Then get back in your car, get your passport ready, and drive across Rainbow Bridge into Ontario, i.e., the Canadian side. From here you can walk along the banks and see all the falls across the river, providing the best spot for panoramic photos. And if you’re staying at one of the hotels on the Canadian side you might just be able to see the view below from your room on the 38th floor.

Niagara Falls Horseshoe Falls

Ah, but you want to get closer to the action right. How about this:

Niagara Falls Horseshoe Falls Rainbow

Next, head on down to the tour boats, get yourself literally immersed in the experience, then get that camera out because back on shore you’ll likely get a photo like this:

Niagara Falls American Falls

Of course, Niagara also boasts two statues of Nikola Tesla, whose alternating current patents allowed the first electricity generation from Niagara Falls.

So there you have Niagara Falls high and low. But one thing you probably won’t do is get the kind of view that Nik Wallenda recently got:

David J. Kent is the author of Tesla: The Wizard of Electricity (2013) and Edison: The Inventor of the Modern World (2016) (both Fall River Press). He has also written two e-books: Nikola Tesla: Renewable Energy Ahead of Its Time and Abraham Lincoln and Nikola Tesla: Connected by Fate. His next book is on Abraham Lincoln, due out in 2017.

Follow me by subscribing by email on the home page.  And feel free to “Like” my Facebook author’s page and connect on LinkedIn.  Share with your friends using the buttons below.